A variety of improvements have been made to the design of concealed body armor garments, so-called “bullet-proof” vests. In the past, many of these garments have been specifically designed for use by police officers as well as the military. Hence, the design considerations of these garments have been concentrated solely on providing lightweight, flexible garments that would protect against death or serious injury from ballistic threats.
Certain examples of the prior art related to concealed body armor garments are:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,331,683 to Stones, et al. (“The '683 patent”) describes a protective body armor garment shell in the form of a vest that can be worn over or in place of a standard uniform shirt. The '683 patent claims that the garment shell maintains a degree of professional appearance while concealing to a certain point that body armor is being worn. The vest disclosed by the '683 patent does not fully protect the wearer's side torso. The sides of the wearer are not covered or protected by either the front or back ballistic panels of the garment shell of the '683 patent. In particular, the portion of the wearer's torso immediately beneath their arms remains vulnerable. It is contemplated that if an individual raises either arm, that the corresponding side portion of his upper torso would be exposed to a bullet wound.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,266,297 to Atkins (“The '297 patent”) describes a ballistic panel carrier garment in the form of a shirt that has receptacles that permit its wearer to readily install and remove ballistic panels. The associated receptacle of the '297 patent garment are dimensioned to protect at least 75% of the upper torso of the wearer. The shirt disclosed by the '297 patent does not fully protect the wearers upper shoulders and the portion of the wearer's torso immediately beneath their arms. The sides of a wearer are not covered or protected by either the front or back ballistic panels. It is contemplated that if a wearer raises either arm, that the corresponding side portion of their upper torso would be exposed to a bullet wound.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,973,275 to Blauer (The '275 patent) discloses a lightweight flexible garment (The Blauer Vest). The Blauer Vest is intended to be unobtrusively worn under ordinary clothing by military personnel, civilian law enforcement authorities, and the like, to protect against sudden, unexpected handgun attack. The Blauer Vest comprises a plurality of panels of Kevlar™ or similar soft mid-flexible ballistic fabric material, enclosed within a durable outer covering. The panels are joined together to completely encircle the wearer's torso so as to provide protection against attack from any direction.
The Blauer Vest resembles garments of ballistic textile material worn over a standard military uniform shirt used by the military. A desirable objective of body armor vests for use by civilian law enforcement, however, is that they be inconspicuous. If the vest is not concealed from view, an attacker will aim at the head and exposed parts of the body rather than the torso. Thus, this defeats the effectiveness of the protective function of the garment. For this reason, vests like the Blauer Vest are normally worn underneath a standard law enforcement uniform shirt or other outer garment not allowing the vest to “breath.” This makes the vest uncomfortable and therefore unsatisfactory for long-term concealed use such as on a day-to-day basis by an ordinary person. The Blauer Vest may also snag or bind on the wearer's outer clothing, thereby inhibiting the wearer's free body movement.
Recent advances in the design and manufacture of ballistic textile materials has made it possible to provide protective apparel that is seasonal, stylish, and relatively lightweight. Until now there has not been available a lightweight, stylish, fashionable, concealable, flexible ballistic body armor that is comfortable and unobtrusive that may be worn under, over or as part of an article of ordinary clothing for long periods of time by an ordinary individual.
Certain high profile individuals such as executives, diplomats, bodyguards, etc. may be under a constant threat of attack by armed individuals. Although these individuals may seek protection in ballistic armor of the prior art, they may lose their professional appearance due to the poor concealability of these aforementioned garments. Furthermore they could not comfortably or realistically wear such heavy and bulky garments as part of their day to day wardrobe Also, such individuals, when attacked, would not have sufficient warning to protect themselves with armored garments of the prior art.
A police officer will still maintain a professional appearance while wearing ballistic armor of the prior art even though the bulk of this armor, as well as its edges, and seams can easily be seen through the officer's shirt. However, a high profile person such as an entertainer or a notable politician would be under closer scrutiny regarding the garments they wear. Thus, if a business person such as a banker or an executive wearing the same ballistic armor as the police officer noted above they would stand out among his or her colleagues. This may detrimentally affect the wearer's professional standing. In addition, an undercover police officer may wish to be protected from ballistic threats without fear that the armor being worn will undermine his/her “cover.”
Also, the concealed types of body armor panels of the prior art can become particularly uncomfortable in warm weather as the panels prevent ventilation of the body and restrict moisture removal. Since the body armor may not be worn in hot weather to avoid discomfort, the individual may be at risk.
Therefore a garment that provides ballistic protection but that looks like ordinary everyday wear would be advantageous. The advantage would also be increased if the ballistic armor can take the form of formal, business, or casual wear to further suit the wearer's setting. A further need has arisen for concealable body armor which is convenient to wear, has a professional appearance for civilian users and allows ventilation when worn.
Furthermore the present invention adds to the degree of comfort of the wearer since one garment can be used for the combined purposes of ballistic protection and formal outerwear unlike examples of the prior art where separate garments must be worn, one type providing the ballistic protection and another independent type providing the formal wear typically worn over the ballistic garment.